CCAR RESPONSA
American Reform Responsa
111. Emblem of the Tribe of Levi
(Vol. XXXIII, 1923, p. 60)QUESTION: A friend would like to know what ensign or emblem the Tribe of Levi had, if any. If not, is there anything that he could use as a seal which might have some connection with the name of the Tribe of Levi?ANSWER: The Tribe of Levi did not have any special standard or emblem. On the breastplate of the High Priest the name of Levi was, according to tradition, engraved upon an emerald stone (Targum Jonathan to Exodus 28:17; comp. also Yalkut Re-uveni to Tetsaveh, Warsaw, 1901, p. 149, where some mystic reasons are given for it). In later times, the Levites used as an emblem on their seal, a pitcher, or a pitcher with a basin, which is symbolic of the function of the Levites in assisting the priests. The Levites pour out the water upon the hands of the priests when the latter prepare to go up to recite the priestly benedictions. These emblems are also found engraved on the tombstones of Levites. Comp. B. Wachstein, Die Inschriften des alten Judenfriedhofes in Wien I (Wien, 1912, p. XLVIII).Jacob Z. Lauterbach and Committee
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